1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protective glove and, more particularly, to a protective glove using magnetics to facilitate donning, doffing, and storing the gloves.
2. Description of the Related Art
Several designs for protective gloves have been designed in the past. None of them, however, include a magnet member that cooperates with an anchoring member to allow a user to easily and readily don and dof the gloves without touching the outer surface of the glove by another glover or the user's hand.
Applicant believes that a related reference corresponds to China patent No. CN203457846 issued to Yan Xiaoli for a loss prevention glove. The Xiaoli reference teaches of a glove having protective, shock absorbing properties. The Xiaoli also discloses the use of a magnet sewn to the inside of the elastic beam edge to be used to keep the gloves from being lost. However, it differs from the present invention because the use of magnets in the Xiaoli reference teach of keeping the gloves together once removed but not how a user can slip out of the gloves using the magnets as the present invention does. The Xiaoli reference does not motivate someone of ordinary skill in the art to create an anchoring member that cooperates with a magnet to withstand the directional forces exerted by a user's hands when removing the gloves.
Applicant believes that a related reference corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 8,746,517 issued to Noel K. Esten for a glove arrangement. The Esten reference discloses of a protective glove using an auxiliary stand-alone member having retention spots to detachably couple with magnetic members on the back of each glove. However, it differs from the present invention because it requires an independent auxiliary member to operate. The present invention eliminates this requirement by having an anchoring member on the gloves that cooperates with magnetic members on the wrist portion of the gloves to allow a user to don and doff the gloves without the need for an external component. This permits a user to achieve the same function without the burden of carrying an auxiliary member. In addition, the auxiliary member may not be ideal for people of all sizes. Many different versions of the auxiliary member may be required to accommodate this problem. The Esten reference does not teach someone of ordinary skill in the art to mount magnetic members to the base of the gloves to cooperate with an anchoring member on the opposite glove for easy application and removal anywhere without requiring auxiliary members.
The present invention allows one glove to be removed at a time thereby permitting a user to have a free hand readily available for other tasks while the opposite hand can remain in the glove. The present glove system further includes a fastening means that the Esten reference does not teach. The fastening means is used the seal the wrist portion of each glove so that the gloves can be washed without getting the interior cavity (where the hands are inserted) wet.
Other documents describing the closest subject matter provide for a number of more or less complicated features that fail to solve the problem in an efficient and economical way. None of these patents suggest the novel features of the present invention.